


In The Wake of War

by JustAnotherQueer



Category: Daredevil (TV), Nexflix's The Punisher, The Punisher (TV 2017)
Genre: F/M, Found Family, Frank adopts Amy, Frank/Karen ONLY if you ship Frank with Amy I will hit you with a baseball bat, Papa Frank - Freeform, Semi-slowburn, kastle - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-06
Updated: 2020-12-06
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:47:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,715
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27912514
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustAnotherQueer/pseuds/JustAnotherQueer
Summary: After all is said and done, Frank doesn't have it in him to send Amy away on her own; now he has to reconcile with his decision to take care of a child with his past still haunting him. Out of ideas, and running low on hope, he finds himself once again on Karen Page's doorstep.
Relationships: Frank Castle/Karen Page
Comments: 21
Kudos: 45





	In The Wake of War

**Author's Note:**

> Hey all, I've been trying to be more creatively productive lately, and I found this in a folder; I’d completely forgot I’d written it, but I still have a fondness for it and know where I was going with it, so I figured I’d post it and see if anyone was interested. I really shouldn’t be working on this, as I have other fics I’m still working on, but the heart wants what the heart wants, and I didn’t want this just rotting in a folder. It's the classic “Found Family” starring Frank Castle, Karen Page, and Amy Bendix! With appearances from Matt Murdock and Foggy Nelson! Enjoy~

The silence that filled the truck as Frank and Amy pulled up to the transit station only got more suffocating by the second, unbroken even after Frank turned the keys and shut off the engine. Neither of them moved. Frank watched Amy out of the corner of his eye. Her eyes were slightly wide and her knuckles white where they gripped her canvas backpack in her lap as she nervously scrutinized the buses arriving and departing; swarms of blissfully ignorant civilians crowding the station as they gave joyful greetings or bittersweet goodbyes. Frank unlocked the truck, but still, neither of them moved.

As Amy sucked in a quick breath of air and bit her lower lip anxiously, Frank was reminded suddenly and sharply of dropping off Lisa for her first day of school. It was one of the rare few milestones of her brief life that Frank was lucky enough to be present for; he could still see her in his mind’s eye. Lisa had sat very much like Amy sat now- only five years old, clutching her PowerPuff Girls backpack with wide eyes; nervous but doing her best to hide it. She’d turned to him and told him in a small voice that she was scared; scared to face the brave new world alone. At the time, Frank had been able to soothe those fears; reassure her that nothing bad would happen, that it would be fun, and that he and Maria would be there to pick her up as soon as the school bell rang. He doubted he’d have nearly as reassuring words for Amy, and for some reason, that knowledge sat heavy in his chest.

“So what, I’m-” Amy broke the silence suddenly in a voice that wavered. She cleared her throat and tried again, her voice more steady, “I’m just supposed to hop on one of these buses and... what? Start over? In Florida?”

“I thought you couldn’t wait to get away from me.” Frank tried to joke, but Amy only shrugged her shoulders. Frank sighed. “You’re a kid,” he said gently, “Should go act like one. I can’t have you on my conscience.”

“I haven’t been a kid in a long time.” Amy argued quietly, turning her head to look at him, “And what? As soon as I’m outta your sight, I’m off your conscience? What happens to me next isn’t your problem anymore right?” She huffed a humorless laugh and turned away from him, glaring at the bustling station. 

Frank sighed again, tapping his trigger finger against the steering wheel. The truth was, that no matter what happened next, Frank doubted Amy would ever fully be off his conscience. No matter where she was in the world, he’d always worry if she was safe, if she was healthy, or happy. But he was also painfully aware no one was ever truly safe around him, that she deserved a life away from all this bullshit. Frank reached into the pocket of his hoodie and pulled out a wad of rolled up bills. “I want you to take that,” he said quietly. “Go on, take it.” he prompted, a little more firmly, when she made no move to take the money. “Put it away.” he said when Amy reached out and reluctantly took the cash without looking at him. “That should take care of you for a bit. When you get down to Florida...” Frank pulled a slip of paper from his other pocket, “I want you to call this number. Yeah?” Amy took it from him and frowned at it curiously. “Buddy of Curtis and mine. He runs a dive school.”

The corner of Amy’s mouth pulled up in a small smile, but she sounded sad as she spoke. “He told you.”

“Yeah.” Frank nearly whispered. “Hidden treasure, huh?” The thought is so innocent in a whimsical way, that for some reason, picturing Amy in a diving suit cracking open a lost treasure chest at the bottom of the sea brings a smile to his face and he huffed out a laugh; the bruises on his face stretching with his smile. “Christ.” 

Amy didn't laugh; she just gave him another small smile and said, “I can’t even swim.” as she turned back to the window. Once again, she reminded him of Lisa. Fucking christ, he didn’t think it would be this hard, but after risking so much to keep her safe- Goddamn if it wasn’t hard sending her off. Frank glanced at the clock, only five minutes until Amy’s bus was supposed to arrive. Frank sighed through his nose, and tried for reassurance. “You know, all this shit that’s gone down, you gotta get past it. You move on, live your life right.”

“How?” Amy asked, in the smallest voice Frank had ever heard her use. “I don’t wanna be on my own again...” To Frank’s horror, tears made their way down her cheeks and shone in her eyes. “I’ve never lived my life right, how do I start now-? From nothing?”

“Hey, hey, hey...” Frank hushes gently, “You wouldn’t be alone- Curt talked to our buddy, he’s a good guy. He’ll take care of you, you’ll be safe there-”

“No I won’t. I’ll just be alone.” Amy interrupted him tearfully, shaking her head. “You’re the only person in the world who I trust... who knows me. Even if your friend is a good guy... I’m still just some random kid- and I’d still be alone.”

“Kid...” Frank sighed heavily, “you know who I am. You know what I do. You know I could never guarantee that you’d be safe.” 

“Safety has never been a guarantee before.” Amy refuted with tears still in her eyes, “I’m going to be looking over my shoulder my whole life anyway, and besides, I’ve never felt safer than when you’re around.” Frank propped his arm on the steering wheel and put his head in his hands, rubbing his temples and searching for a reassuring answer when Amy muttered quietly under her breath in a small broken tone, “I thought we were good together.”

For some fucking reason, those words hit like a blow to the chest, and whatever Frank had been preparing to say dies on his tongue. Not only were they a good team, but she’d saved his life in more ways than he’d cared to admit. Amy had given him something to fight for that was fueled by protection and love instead of revenge and fury- given him something to live for. And now he was just supposed to send her off, trust that somebody else would do whatever it took to keep her safe? Frank watched as Amy’s bus pulled up to the station, and the sight of it only confirmed what he’d already known. Frank cursed out loud, “Fucking goddamned Christ kid...” he grouched as he put the keys back in the ignition and started the truck. 

“You’re...” Amy stuttered, staring at him with wide, surprised eyes. “You’re not making me go?”

“Guess not.” Frank muttered, working his jaw and scrubbing a hand down his face. Amy gave him an actual smile, the look of grateful relief on her face too raw for him to meet head on. Frank turned away from her watery stare and back through his windshield and watched as Amy’s bus departed, cursing his recent life decisions.

“Why?” Amy almost sounded afraid to ask, like acknowledging his decision out loud would jeopardize the outcome.

“I dunno.” Frank answered. “Guess I wasn’t looking forward to starting over alone either.” 

When Frank looked back at her she was staring back, a determined, calculating look on her face, her eyebrows drawn together as she considered him. “You know, all this time, though, I did wonder why... why did you come after me in the bar that night?”

Frank smiled with the corner of his mouth and didn’t hesitate when he answered,“‘Rough Road.’” By the way Amy squinted at him it was clear she didn’t remember, but the memory kept the smirk on Frank’s face and he could feel the split on his lip strain with the smile. “Uh, it’s... it’s what you called me, remember? Rough Road.” Frank shrugged his shoulders, “I don’t know, I thought it was funny.”

“Hmm.” The small hum was the only reponse Amy gave as she thought it over, looking down at her lap.

“Yeah,” Frank muttered, thinking back on that night in the bar and remembering the barely contained wide-eyed fear on Amy’s face, and how lost she had seemed, “it was like the tougher you acted, the more scared you looked.”

“I’m sorry, are... are you saying that you care?” Amy tried to make her voice light, trying to downplay the weight behind the question, and failed. Frank couldn’t get his words past his throat, and after a pause, Amy continued, “Well, I... I care about you, too. I mean, I owe you... pretty much everything.”

“You know, kid... sometimes... you find things and, uh... they change your life.” Frank cleared his throat, trying to dislodge the sudden tremble in his voice and burning in his eyes. Anything he might have said after that was smothered as she lunged across the cab of the trunk and engulfed him in an awkward hug, her arms wrapped around him sideways, and his battered face pressed into the arm of her sweater. He could hear her sniffling, and despite himself, a few tears escaped the corners of his eyes.

They broke apart after a moment, both of them wiping at their eyes and clearing their throats, looking out the windows. “So,” Amy said, and it still sounded choked, her eyes bright. “what now?”

Frank didn't have any fucking idea what he was doing before he acquired a snarky adolescent, and he had even less of a fucking idea now that he had one. He had planned to be on his own, laying low and scraping by, but he couldn’t do that for much longer. Not now. Frank sighed and looked back to the road- to where he’d instinctually started driving and felt a certain kind of resignation in his chest. There was at least one person he knew would help them. “Now, we go visit a friend... and we figure it out from there.”

**Author's Note:**

> Welp that's the end of the first, if anyone wants me to keep going let me know and I will do my best. Kudos/Comments are always appreciated!


End file.
